Bound to the Triplet Alphas

ARIA POV

"You’re not seriously considering this!" Kael roared, throwing the chair across the room. It smashed against the wall, breaking into bits.

I flinched but stood my ground. After Emma’s shocking revelation—that I might be the imposter, not the false queen—I’d fled back to our private rooms. I needed time to think, to process. Instead, I walked right into a storm.

"Kael, please," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "Breaking furniture won’t solve anything."

Jaxon lounged on the couch, looking too relaxed for the anxiety filling the room. "I think it’s clear what we need to do. The humans have tools we don’t. Information we need. Only a fool would turn that down."

"Only a fool would trust them!" Kael growled, turning on his brother. "Centuries of hiding, of protecting our kind, and you want to throw it all away?"

Lucien stood by the window, silent as always. His eyes moved between his brothers, troubled.

"What about you?" I asked him. "What do you think about working with the humans?"

Before he could answer, Kael cut in. "It doesn’t matter what any of us thinks. I am the Alpha heir. I say no."

Something in me snapped. The stress of the last few days—the fake queen, the babies, Emma’s claim—it all boiled over.

"You are not the only Alpha here," I said, my voice cold. "Or have you forgotten that I am your equal?"

The room went quiet. In all our time together, I had never pulled rank on Kael. Never challenged him so directly.

Kael’s face darkened. "You want to make this about power? Fine. Put it to a vote among the pack. See how many support bringing people into our world."

"This isn’t about what’s popular," I argued. "It’s about what keeps us going. Keeps our babies alive."

At the mention of our children, Kael’s anger weakened. His hand reached toward my belly, then dropped. "That’s why we can’t trust her. You heard what Emma said—that you’re the fake. She’s trying to split us."

"Or telling the truth," Jaxon said with a shrug. "Either way, their weapons work."

Kael whirled on him. "Is that all you care about? Weapons? New toys to play with?"

"I care about survival," Jaxon snapped back, standing up. "Unlike you, who’d rather die proud than live smart."

The brothers faced each other, anxiety crackling between them. I could feel their dogs rising, ready to fight.

"Stop it!" I shouted. "Both of you!"

They ignored me, locked in their dominance fight.

"Lucien," I begged. "Say something."

Lucien finally turned from the window. "Emma could be lying about everything. Or nothing. But there’s one fact no one is talking about."

We all looked at him.

"If one of the twins is destined to end all queens," he said quietly, "that means ending Aria too."

The room went deathly still.

"No," Kael whispered.

"It’s a possibility," Lucien continued. "One we have to consider."

I felt cold all over. Lucien was right. If one baby was the end queen and one was the destroyer of queens—what did that mean for me?

"All the more reason to keep humans out of it," Kael urged. "They’ll want to control the kids. Study them. Maybe even separate them."

"Or protect them," Jaxon replied. "Give them a fighting chance against the false queen."

"Since when do you care about children?" Kael sneered.

Jaxon’s face hardened. "Just because I don’t want my own doesn’t mean I want Aria’s to die."

The twins kicked inside me, as if sensing the fight. I put my hands on my stomach, trying to calm them. Trying to calm myself.

"What if Emma’s right?" I asked quietly. "What if I am the imposter?"

"Don’t be ridiculous," Kael said quickly.

"Is it ridiculous?" I pressed. "I came out of nowhere. No family background. No pack until you three. What if all my memories are fake?"

"They’re not," Lucien said with surprising confidence. "I’ve been in your mind through our link. I’ve seen your thoughts. They’re real."

"But what if—"

"No," Lucien interrupted. "You are not the fake. You are Aria, Luna of the Moonclaw Pack."

His confidence steadied me.

"Then who is Emma?" I wondered. "What does she want?"

"Nothing good," Kael growled. "We should kill her now, before she contacts her people."

"And start a war with the humans?" Jaxon laughed bitterly. "Brilliant plan."

"Better than rolling over and showing our throats!"

I couldn’t take any more fighting. "Enough! I need to think clearly, and I can’t with you two at each other’s throats!"

Surprisingly, they both fell silent.

"Luna," Mira called from outside the door. "Elder Malin asks to speak with you. Says it’s urgent."

I sighed. "Tell him I’ll be right there."

"This isn’t over," Kael warned as I made for the door.

"No," I agreed. "It’s not."

I found Elder Malin in his quarters, surrounded by old books and smoking herbs. The smell made me dizzy.

"You wanted to see me?" I asked.

The old wolf looked up, his white eyes somehow seeing right through me. "The choice you face is not what you think, young Luna."

I was too tired for puzzles. "Please, Elder. Speak plainly."

"The humans are not your allies," he said. "But they are not your enemies either. They are a test."

"A test of what?" I asked, sitting down across from him.

"Of your heart." He reached for my hand, his fingers ice cold against my skin. "The three sons of Darius each represent a way. The eldest seeks heritage and safety. The middle child seeks growth and risk. The youngest wants balance and wisdom. Which will you follow?"

"I don’t have to follow any of them," I said, pulling my hand away. "I’m their Luna, not their shadow."

Elder Malin smiled. "And that is why the Moon Goddess chose you."

"For what?" I asked.

"To heal the rift," he said simply. "Between old and new. Between dog and human. Between queen and killer."

My patience was running thin. "How am I supposed to do that when I can’t even get my mates to agree on dinner plans, let alone life-or-death decisions?"

"By remembering who you were before you became Luna," he said cryptically. "The omega who survived in shadows."

A knock at the door stopped us. Lucien entered, his face grave.

"Aria, you need to come quickly," he said. "We’ve received a message from the false queen."

My heart jumped. "What does she want?"

"She wants to meet," Lucien said. "Just you and her. Alone."

"That’s suicide," I argued.

"She says if you don’t come, she’ll attack the human village tonight. Hundreds will die."

Elder Malin’s hand shot out, grabbing my wrist. "Remember the omega," he whispered quickly. "Trust your instincts, not your fears."

I pulled away, following Lucien back to the main hall. Kael and Jaxon were already there, fighting again. Between them stood Emma, her face pale.

"You need to see this," she said, giving me a small device.

A holographic picture appeared—a perfect copy of my face, but with glowing purple eyes.

"Hello, sister," my double said with a cruel smile. "It’s time we met. Just you and me. No friends, no pack. Or else I burn the village to the ground."

"Don’t do it," Kael said instantly.

"We can protect the village," Jaxon added.

But I wasn’t listening to them. I was watching Emma, whose hand was slowly moving toward her pocket.

"What are you doing?" I asked her sharply.

Everyone turned to look at Emma. Her hand froze.

"Nothing," she said quickly. Too quickly.

"Show me your pocket," I ordered.

"This is ridiculous," Emma said, backing away. "We don’t have time—"

Lucien moved faster than I’d ever seen him move. In one fluid move, he grabbed Emma’s arm and pulled something from her pocket.

A small metal device with a blinking red light.

"What is this?" Lucien asked, his voice dangerous.

Emma’s face changed. Her fear disappeared, replaced by cold determination.

"It’s too late," she said. "They’re already here."

The ground beneath us shook. The walls shook. Outside, wolves began to howl in fear.

"What did you do?" I whispered.

Emma smiled, but there was no love in it. "I picked a side. The winning side."

An blast rocked the pack house. Dust fell from the roof.

"Your pack or the humans," Emma said. "You have thirty seconds to decide which one lives."